Draft Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019

Liz McInnes Excerpts

Tuesday 5th February 2019 General Committees

[Liz McInnes (Heywood and Middleton) (Lab)]

It is important to have clarity about the Kimberley process certification scheme in future. It is right that the UK should continue to participate in international initiatives to stop the trade in conflict diamonds to ensure that the purchase of diamonds does not finance violence in Africa.

I have several questions to ask the Minister in the interests of clarity. The explanatory memorandum does not give a great deal of detail about the consequences of the legislation, specifically the potential damage to trade if the UK’s application to the Kimberley process is delayed. I ask the Minister to provide further information to enable us to make informed decisions.

The document that describes why the measure was brought to the special attention of the House states that it,

“gives the Secretary of State power, by statutory instrument subject to the affirmative procedure, to make further amendments to the Council Regulation where he or she ‘considers that this [Council] Regulation is no longer effective to ensure that the law of the United Kingdom is consistent with the international Kimberley Process requirements’.”

It also states that,

“this mechanism allows no more than is appropriate”,

which raises concerns about how clear the powers are. I should be grateful for clarification from the Minister on that point.

On the broader impact of Brexit on the diamond trade in the UK, it is my understanding that 94% of our trade in that area is with the EU. That will most likely disappear after exit day, regardless of the outcome of our application to the Kimberley process. After we leave the EU, trade will probably go directly to the EU, rather than via the UK, as before. Has the Department made any assessment of the cost of that to the UK?

Finally, on the lack of any impact assessment, I find it unsatisfactory that the documents state that no impact assessment has been done because it is not believed that there is any impact. I do not think that is a good enough reason not to do an impact assessment. The point of doing an assessment is to ascertain what the impact is. I thank the Minister for his remarks and I should be grateful if he would clarify those points.